Of all the touristic “city Heurige” in Vienna’s first district, Gigerl is probably the most touristic. For years, while walking down the Kärtnerstrasse, one would inevitably meet a guy wearing a sandwich board inviting the guests of the Austrian capital to stroll into a nearby dark and narrow street and experience the authentic Heuriger atmosphere without having to travel to Grinzing. Unfortunately, to make that experience all the more authentic, Gigerl offered cold dishes from a buffet rather than from a menu, which went against my principle of only reviewing the Brettljausen that the customers have no influence upon. Hence Gigerl has never been featured on these pages.
All this changed this year with the Heuriger’s special offer of an “after art” Brettljause for two, served strictly after 10 p.m. and including half a liter of wine for only 11 euros. The idea, I assume, was to target the tourists who suddenly felt an urge to eat an unhealthy snack right after a concert or an opera, with the Mozarts and Beethovens still ringing in their ears. If that was really the intention, Gigerl has failed quite spectacularly, for instead of a music connoisseur, they have got me, quite hungry and deadly tired after a 20 kilometer hike, but curious.
Whatever one can think of this Brettljause, it is certainly a good deal, and considering the location, it is an almost unbelievably good deal. After deducting 6 euros, which the two quarters of generic Grüner Veltliner would have probably cost, the Brettljause was totally worth the remaining 5 euros.
This is not to say that the Jause was wonderful, of course. The Schweinsbraten slices tasted a bit old, with their skin tooth breaking rather than crunchy. The cold minced meat (Faschierter Braten) was quite a surprise to find – it’s more commonly part of Brettljausen of Mostviertel than Vienna and its surroundings – but lacked any particular flavor and also annoyingly broke into pieces whenever I touched it with the fork. The extremely fat Wurzelspeck tasted of smoke and salt more than of pork, and the strength of the cheese came more from the spices clued to its crust than from the cheese itself. The Geselchtes was probably the best part of the Jause, while the small salty sausage must have come straight out of a supermarket’s foil packaging.
On the other hand, while I was writing the above paragraph, I was feeling exceedingly bad, because to be honest, I have quite enjoyed the late Jause of Gigerl. Perhaps that is because the Heuriger was nearly empty and the service was exceptionally friendly. Or maybe it was simply unusual and funny to eat a Brettljause so late. Witnessing the lack of tourists’ enthusiasm, I very much doubt that this generous offer is going to survive for a long time, but that is just another good reason to take advantage of it while it lasts. Personally, I can quite well do it again.
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